1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a water tapping fixture with an outlet opening which is connected to a supply connection through a pipe having at least one valve.
2. Description of the Related Art
Water tapping fixtures of the above-mentioned type are used for removing water from a supply system in a house or building, for example, a system of water pipes. They are usually arranged above a sink in a bathroom or kitchen, a bathtub or a shower. The water removed from the fixtures is used for cleaning or refreshing the human body and is used as drinking water.
In all of the aforementioned cases, water removed through such a water tapping fixture comes into contact with the human body or is consumed by the human body, either by swallowing during drinking or by breathing, for example, when the user takes a shower and breathes the vapors, mists or water droplets produced thereby.
Clean drinking water is an essential requirement for the health of the human body. Therefore, in most developed countries, drinking water is made available by public supply systems having a high quality, particularly with respect to cleanliness and low counts of germs. Accordingly, it can be assumed that the water delivered to households, hotels, restaurants or businesses meets the standards required by law which, for example, require that water may not contain more than a given number of germs. This requirement is practically continuously met because the water of public supply systems is continuously circulated.
On the other hand, the conditions in the network of pipes in some houses may be quite different. Houses have tapping points which are used infrequently and, therefore, the flow through these points is not optimal. These problems occur especially in weekend and vacation homes, hotels, etc., in which the water removal takes place in longer intervals. This is because in most water tapping fixtures there are dead spaces in which the water remains after a removal. These dead spaces are flushed only during the next water removal. As long as no water removal takes place, germs, i.e., microorganisms and the like, can multiply. The germ contents in these dead spaces frequently reach a value which is actually no longer permissible with respect to health aspects. Consequently, substantially contaminated water is removed from the water tapping fixture at the beginning of the removal process. Since the germs frequently also deposit at the walls of the water fixture, particularly in the aforementioned dead spaces, the subsequently flowing water also has higher germ contents than the water originating directly from the public supply system. The removed water is also not usually heated over a minimum period of time to about 60.degree.-70.degree. C. This means that the germs are also not killed off.
The addition of chlorine and other chemicals also only has a limited effect in this situation.
Therefore, it can be sometimes observed that filter elements with fine pores are connected to the water tapping fixtures, for example, water faucets. These filter elements are capable of holding back germs to a predetermined size. However, such filters are frequently not capable of holding back smaller germs, for example, viruses. Moreover, the germs actually collect in the filter and, thus, produce the danger of infection, particularly when such filters are removed. Furthermore, it has been found that when such filters are used for a longer period of time, the germs may grow through the pores which are smaller than their own diameter. This means that the germs finally do reach the "germ-free side" of the filter and can be discharged through the water fixture.